Former Sonoma State student imprisoned on child abuse charges could be granted probation

A former Sonoma State University student whose 11-year prison sentence for abusing her baby was reversed on appeal could be released next month.

Lyndsay Colula, 23, received the punishment in 2013 for failing to seek medical care for her newborn daughter for fear doctors would discover she was smoking pot while breastfeeding.

The child was later found to have a broken leg, fractured ribs and injuries to her head and toes that prosecutors said were caused by the parents. Colula’s husband, Daniel Colula, then 30, received 10 years in prison for his role.

But earlier this year, the 1st District Court of Appeal reversed the mother’s punishment on the grounds that the judge relied improperly on facts in a dismissed allegation. The case was sent back for resentencing.

The decision came as Colula’s lawyers filed separate legal papers claiming the sentencing judge, Gary Medvigy, didn’t live up to promises to give Colula probation as part of a pretrial agreement in which she pleaded no contest to felony child abuse.

On Friday, with Colula standing in his Santa Rosa courtroom alongside her lawyers, Medvigy said he was considering resentencing Colula to probation and releasing her with credit for time already served.

He said he learned the child has recuperated and “this very young woman was a model prisoner.”

“This started out as a probation case,” Medvigy said.

Medvigy explained he was persuaded to send her to prison two years ago after reading her statements to probation officers and a report from state prison officials who recommended a period of incarceration. Prosecutors also pushed for prison.

He is expected to announce the new punishment at a Sept. 8 hearing.

“I’m not promising anything,” he said.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Brian Staebell said in court papers he would seek the maximum punishment of 12 years. Colula has admitted that she personally inflicted great bodily injury on her 2-month-old daughter, he said.

The child somehow suffered a broken tibia, which Colula treated herself by wrapping the baby’s leg with a bandage to avoid a doctor visit, Staebell.

He said she offered varying explanations for the broken bones, including that the child fell off a bed. Colula, who was a junior at SSU at the time of her arrest, later blamed her husband for the injuries.

Medvigy’s apparent change of heart came as Colula’s lawyer, Dennis Riordan, requested that Medvigy be disqualified from considering her new punishment, based on the appeals decision.

However, that request appeared to be on hold with the judge’s indication he could grant probation. If Colula is released, a hearing in which Medvigy could be called to testify about any previous sentencing agreement would be moot.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.